Ready for the latest take on a television classic to hit your TV screen? TNT hopes so, as the network has ordered an initial season of Dallas, which will continue the story of the venerated primetime soap.

The new show (don’t call it a reboot) will begin in the summer of 2012, but nostalgic Dallasfans can get a glimpse of the pilot next Monday, July 11th. The preview will air during the summer debuts of The Closerand Rizzoli & Isles.

Certainly the most exciting news for those with fond memories of Dallas‘ original 14-year run is the return of Larry Hagman, Patrick Duffy and Linda Gray, who will reprise their roles of J.R., Bobby and Sue Ellen Ewing, respectively. But since it’s been over two decades since Dallas went off the air for good, the new series will feature the next generation of Texas oilmen and women.

Chief among them are two Desperate Housewivesalumni, Josh Henderson and Jesse Metcalfe. They’ll be playing J.R.’s son Jon Ross (of course) and Bobby’s son Christopher, respectively. Both are smitten with the character played by Jordana Brewster (Fast & Furious). This presents a problem for Christopher, who’s engaged to Rebecca (Julie Gonzalo of Veronica Mars and Eli Stone).

It looks like the forbidden love and intrigue of the original will play a major part in the revival. As they say in Texas, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Dallas represents TNT’s attempt at the reboot game, but they’re hardly standing alone. CBS has Hawaii Five-0, ABC has the forthcoming Charlie’s Angels, and the recently cancelled V. Add to that disastrous attempts like Bionic Woman, Knight Rider and the scrapped Wonder Woman, and it’s safe to say that movies no longer have an exclusive on IP retreads.

So, which camp will Dallas fall into? It’s hard to say at the moment. While bringing back the biggest names from the original is a good start, it’ll be hard to gain an audience among viewers who have to check Wikipedia to find out who shot J.R. Then again, TNT doesn’t exactly aim for the younger crowd, and a a recognizable name like Dallas may be just the thing to replace the network’s flagship original The Closer, which is starting its final season.

–

Dallas will mosey onto TNT next summer. You can see a special preview Monday, July 11th between 8PM and 10PM.